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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26647063">Hermione Granger and the Chamber of Secrets: the untold story from Book 7</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/muggleborn_and_proud/pseuds/muggleborn_and_proud'>muggleborn_and_proud</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>F/M, Gen</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-09-25</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-03-07</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 09:35:48</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>9</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>8,820</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26647063</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/muggleborn_and_proud/pseuds/muggleborn_and_proud</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>This is my version of what happens in Book 7 when Ron and Hermione pay a visit to the Chamber of Secrets to collect basilisk fangs, and also destroy Hufflepuff's cup. The incident brings Ron and Hermione closer.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Hermione Granger/Ron Weasley</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>11</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>22</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. The Room of Requirement</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Hope you like the story! I'm really keen to explore what happens between Hermione and the cup - because the diary tried to kill Harry, the locket tortured Ron, and the ring nearly killed Dumbledore. Let's see where my imagination takes me!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Hermione and Ron stared open-mouthed at the entrance of the tunnel leading from the Hog’s Head into the Room of Requirement. It sounded as though an army of people were making their way in. Out first was Bill, his long red ponytail swinging behind his head. He jumped down, grinned at Ron and Ginny and then turned as Fleur landed next to him. Pushing her silvery mane out of her face, Fleur made straight for Hermione and pulled her into a hug. Hermione was rather taken-aback, but pleased, nevertheless, as she hugged Fleur back. Next to them, Bill was hugging Ron.</p><p>Over Fleur’s shoulder, Hermione’s eye was caught by another movement at the tunnel entrance. Looking thinner and paler than ever was Lupin, followed by Kingsley. Kingsley smiled at Hermione and shook hands gravely with Ron. Lupin moved forward to greet Ron, his hand extended, but Ron ignored his hand and hugged him tightly instead.</p><p>And now even more people were coming through – a tall, thin, balding wizard, his glasses slightly askew, landed in an awkward heap on the floor, jumping up almost immediately to turn and help the person behind him, and it was –</p><p>“Mum!” yelled Ron, stunned. “Dad!”</p><p>“Oh, <em>Ronnie</em>,” wept Mrs. Weasley, swooping down on Ron and holding him tightly. Ron winced a little, but hugged his mother as she sobbed unrestrainedly into his chest. “It’s okay, Mum,” he said vainly, trying to free himself while Mrs. Weasley showed no signs of wanting to let go of him.</p><p>“Thank goodness you two are safe,” said Mr. Weasley, smiling at Hermione and looking around at Ron, who had finally managed to break free of Mrs. Weasley and had retreated a good distance away. Mrs. Weasley grabbed Hermione, squeezing all the air out of her. Hermione weakly patted Mrs. Weasley on the back.</p><p>Suddenly, Mrs. Weasley loosened her grip. Her face was still wet with tears but she was no longer crying. She was staring past Hermione at something with mingled fury and terror.</p><p>“GINNY!” bellowed Mrs. Weasley.</p><p>Ginny, who had been trying to conceal herself behind Ron, emerged out the shadows. Her mouth had a decidedly sulky droop to it.</p><p>“Mum,” she said, spitting the word out with distaste, refusing to meet Mrs. Weasley’s eyes.</p><p>“YOU SHOULDN’T BE HERE, YOUR FATHER AND I TOLD YOU TO STAY AWAY, AND YOU DISOBEYED US COMPLETELY – ”</p><p>“Er – bathroom,” mumbled Ron, moving away from Ginny. Ginny shot him an incredulous look as Mrs. Weasley continued her tirade.</p><p>“ – YOU’RE JUST A CHILD, YOU’RE NOT OF AGE, YOU THINK YOU CAN JUST COME WATCH THE FUN, THERE’S GOING TO BE MURDER AND BLOODSHED HERE TONIGHT – ”</p><p>“I’m not a child!”, screamed Ginny, fury blazing in her eyes. “I can duel as well as any of you! I learned it from Harry! I’m going to fight! I’m going – ”</p><p>“ – THE ONLY PLACE YOU’LL BE GOING IS HOME – ”</p><p>Hermione looked around to see Lupin standing next to her. He was staring in a dispassionate sort of way at Mrs. Weasley and Ginny’s shouting match. </p><p>“How’s Tonks?” asked Hermione, softly. Lupin started and looked at her. A faint smile flickered on his face.</p><p>“Tonks is fine. She and Teddy are at her mother’s,” said Lupin. “She’s worried sick, though – I didn’t want to bring her with me. She protested – not unlike Ginny here – but I think I convinced her in the end to stay with Teddy. I hope Andromeda will keep her calm.”</p><p>Hermione nodded, processing this as she suddenly felt a hand close over her wrist. She turned her head to meet Ron’s blue eyes. They were wide and anxious.</p><p>“Ron, what – ” began Hermione, but Ron cut her short. “Bathroom,” he muttered, again. “Come with me. Please. See you later, Remus,” he added.</p><p>“Take care, Remus,” whispered Hermione, as Ron dragged her off to the exit.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Ron's Brainwave</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Ron, what happened? Where are we going?”</p><p>“Moaning Myrtle’s bathroom. Hurry up, Hermione, we’re moving too slowly!” he added, as Hermione abruptly stopped walking, her jaw dropping.</p><p>“<em>Moaning Myrtle’s bathroom</em>? Ron, you really fancy paying Myrtle a visit now?” asked Hermione, wondering if she had indeed heard Ron right.</p><p>“Oh yes, of course I do. Need to discuss bathroom sharing with Myrtle in case we all die, you know,” muttered Ron, as he tried to pull Hermione into walking again.</p><p>“<em>Don’t!</em>” screamed Hermione, her eyes filling with tears. “Oh, <em>Ron</em> – please don’t talk like that! I can’t stop thinking about it – so many people are going to die! What would happen to us if Harry dies tonight? What will I do if – if <em>you</em> – ”</p><p>Ron dropped Hermione’s wrist and wordlessly wrapped his arms around her. The solid comfort of Ron’s body, the warmth and pressure of his hug were too much for Hermione. Tears cascaded down her cheeks as she sobbed into his shoulder, putting her arms around his neck, his chin resting on the top of her head. She could feel Ron shaking, trying to suppress his emotions as he held her even closer.</p><p>“Hermione,” whispered Ron, from somewhere above her. Hermione refused to look up.</p><p>“Hermione, listen to me,” he said, releasing her and putting his hands on her shoulders, shaking her gently.</p><p>Hermione blinked and raised her tear-stained face. The brown eyes met the blue.</p><p>“Hermione, look, we don’t know who all are going to die tonight,” said Ron. “It could be Harry, it could be me, you, anyone. And that’s not in our control. But if we die, we’re going to take as much of You-Know-Who with us as we can. Right?”</p><p>Hermione swallowed and nodded. Somehow, Ron’s realism was much more soothing than a hollow assertion like “Oh, don’t be ridiculous, Hermione, we’re all going to be just fine.”</p><p>Ron smiled slightly. “That’s my girl.”</p><p>Hermione’s heart almost stopped. It was highly likely that either she, or Ron, or both of them would not survive to see the sun rise tomorrow. And she realized, with a pang, that she still hadn’t told Ron how she felt about him. He felt the same way about her, she was sure – the way he looked at her, the way he looked after her. But it had all been unsaid so far, and only felt. Hermione knew that she had been putting off confronting her feelings by telling herself that she could not speak freely to Ron in front of Harry. But now, the finality of it all hit her with a dull thud. If she didn’t tell Ron now, she would probably never be able to tell him.</p><p>Hermione opened her mouth to speak, and suddenly felt herself jerk as she was pulled forward. Ron was holding her hand firmly and leading her along the dark corridor.</p><p>“Ron?”</p><p>“Yeah?”</p><p>“Ron, I – ” she hesitated. And all of a sudden, she blurted out, “Ron, why are we going to Moaning Myrtle’s bathroom?”</p><p>Ron stopped and turned to stare at Hermione.</p><p>“Hang on – you don’t know <em>why</em> we’re going there?”</p><p>He looked so incredulous that Hermione felt compelled to be defensive. “No, I don’t! Why would you want to go down there? Have a chat with Myrtle?”</p><p>“Chamber of Secrets, Hermione,” said Ron, still staring at her.</p><p>“What – <em>oh!</em>”</p><p>“Exactly!” yelled Ron, punching the air with his fist. “You see, don’t you? It’s like you said – we’ve found Horcruxes, all right, we may even find the one related to Ravenclaw, but what’s the point of finding them if we can’t get rid of the bloody things? And the body of that – that thing – should still be there. Its venom – basilisk venom – that’s what we need!”</p><p>Ron looked extremely pleased with himself – but at the same time, he was eyeing Hermione with some apprehension. It was almost as if he were waiting for Hermione to point out an obvious flaw in the plan, and tell him it wasn’t clever enough. That he wasn’t smart enough.</p><p>“That’s – that’s just <em>brilliant</em>, Ron,” Hermione managed, after a very pregnant pause. Her voice had sunk almost to a whisper. She was struggling with extremely mixed feelings. On the one hand, she was awestruck at the simplicity and genius of Ron’s brainwave – while on the other hand, she couldn’t help but feel a little ashamed that <em>she</em> hadn’t thought of it. Wasn’t <em>she</em> the brainy one? How could Ron have beaten her to it?</p><p>Ron’s face broke into a rapturous smile. “Hermione,” he said hoarsely, grabbing both her hands in both his own, “coming from you, ‘brilliant’ means a <em>bloody</em> lot to me.”</p><p>Hermione felt a lump rise in her throat.</p><p>“Language, Ron!” she said, frowning at him.</p><p>Ron grinned even more widely. “You’re starting to sound a lot more like yourself. Come on now, off we go then.”</p><p>The two quickly moved through the corridors, passing harassed looking teachers, students and ghosts. Several voices hailed them as they hurried past.</p><p>“Hey – isn’t that Weasley? Weasley!”</p><p>“Ron!”</p><p>“Hermione? I thought she was in hiding with her parents!”</p><p>“Didn’t Weasley have spattergroit? Is he all right now? Is he still <em>contagious</em>?”</p><p>Ron swore under his breath and quickened his pace as Hermione began to jog to keep up with him.</p><p>“Hey look, it’s <em>Granger</em>! It’s a Mudblood – aaargh!”</p><p>Ron’s hand moved so fast that all Hermione could see was a blur and the sound of something bubbling, accompanied by someone retching. A peal of laughter broke out.</p><p>“Ron – what – what did you do to him?” panted Hermione. She had almost broken into a run now, and wishing she could douse Ron with some Shrinking Solution.</p><p>“Scouring Charm,” said Ron, matter-of-factly. “I thought he needed to wash his mouth out.”</p><p>Hermione didn’t know how to respond, but they were saved the bother as they finally reached the door to Myrtle’s bathroom on the second floor. Ron pushed it open and held it for Hermione to pass through. The door swung shut behind them, and they were suddenly plunged in silence, away from the disturbances in the school.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Moaning Myrtle</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Who’s there?” came a sulky voice, and Moaning Myrtle came floating up from the farthest cubicle. She eyed Hermione and Ron and her face fell visibly.</p><p>“Oh,” she said.</p><p>“Good evening to you too, Myrtle,” said Hermione.</p><p>“Where’s the other boy?” said Myrtle, ignoring Hermione and staring at Ron. “The one that used to be with you all the time – with black hair and glasses. I like him. He’s nice.”</p><p>“Er – Harry’s not here, Myrtle,” said Hermione. “We’re sorry we disturbed you, we’ll be leaving now – ”</p><p>“I watched him in his bath once,” said Myrtle meditatively.</p><p>Hermione rolled her eyes while Ron looked completely sickened.</p><p>“I closed my eyes when he got in! There’s no need to look so disgusted!” cried Myrtle. “I like him, but he doesn’t like me, he hasn’t been to see me at all.” Tears began to well up in Myrtle’s eyes.</p><p>“He thinks you’re nice too, Myrtle,” said Hermione, while Ron turned away to examine the sinks. “He’s just been busy – really busy – ”</p><p>“Oh, <em>I</em> know all about how busy he’s been!”, shrieked Myrtle. Ron jumped violently.</p><p>Myrtle was half-screaming, half-wailing now. “Oh yes, I do!” she screeched. “I saw him all of last year – running around with that silly redhead – ”</p><p>“Hey, that’s my sister you’re talking about!” yelled Ron.</p><p>“They barged in here one day, while I was sitting in the U-bend, thinking about Olive Hornby and how mean she’d been to me. I came up to see who it was and it was him – he was <em>snogging</em> her, putting his hands all over her – ”</p><p>“WHAT?” bellowed Ron. He looked simply furious.</p><p>“Myrtle, that’s enough,” said Hermione, privately thinking that when it came to looking for a quiet place to spend some alone time, Harry and Ginny didn’t have the best taste. Even Hagrid’s pumpkin patch would have been a better choice. “We don’t need to hear what Harry did – ”</p><p>“But <em>Hermione</em> – ”</p><p>“No, Ron, Chamber of Secrets, remember?”</p><p>Ron seemed to calm down a bit. He glared at Myrtle who stared back, quite unabashed, her eyes still wet. Finally, tearing his gaze from Myrtle, he turned to Hermione, who was examining the sinks with a frown on her face.</p><p>“Ron – Harry had to use Parseltongue to open the Chamber, didn’t he? How are we going to do it?”</p><p>Hermione couldn’t keep a tiny note of triumph out of her voice, for having finally spotted a flaw in Ron’s perfect plan. She felt ashamed, but also couldn’t help feeling vindicated, somehow.</p><p>To her utter surprise, therefore, Ron’s face didn’t fall. Instead, he looked most satisfied, as though he had been expecting her question. “You think I haven’t thought about that?” he said, grinning. “Move over, Hermione.”</p><p>Ron stood in front of the sink; his eyes fixed on the tiny carved snake on the tap of one of the sinks. He took a deep breath, and then let out a strangled hiss.</p><p>Hermione gasped. <em>When had Ron learned Parseltongue?</em></p><p>The sink remained perfectly still.</p><p>“Well, that can’t be right,” muttered Ron to himself. He hissed again, a horrible noise that echoed around the bathroom.</p><p>Still, the sink didn’t move.</p><p>He looked sideways at Hermione, who was still staring in shock. “Third time lucky, do you think?” he said, cocking his head at her.</p><p>Hermione merely gaped at him.</p><p>Ron trained his gaze once more upon the carved snake. He swallowed, took a deep breath. Once more, a strangled hiss filled the bathroom.</p><p>And then it happened. Hermione’s jaw dropped as the sink slowly moved all the way down into the floor of the bathroom, and then vanished from sight. A large pipe now stood exposed behind the sink.</p><p>Hermione found her voice finally.</p><p>“Is that it? Is that the entrance to the Chamber?”</p><p>“Well, yeah,” said Ron, sounding confused. “This is what it looked like the last time – oh. Yeah, you weren’t there.”</p><p>Ron averted his gaze. The last time he had been looking at the entrance to the Chamber, Hermione had been lying Petrified in the hospital wing. Hermione was sure Ron was thinking the same thing. She went closer to him, took his hand in hers and squeezed it. He smiled gratefully down at her.</p><p>“So, are you ready? Shall we go inside?”</p><p>“You’re going in there?” said a far-off voice, and Hermione realized that Myrtle was once more in their midst. “I wouldn’t if I were you. It was the creature inside that caused my death, you know.”</p><p>“It’s dead now, Myrtle,” said Ron, wearily. “We’ll be fine.”</p><p>Myrtle turned to face Ron. “I’ve seen you, too,” she said, staring at him.</p><p>“Um yeah, you have, I suppose,” said Hermione. “We’re all students at the school, remember?”</p><p>“I mean, I’ve seen you in the prefects’ bathroom,” said Myrtle, eyeing Ron in a most unpleasant manner. “It was nearly as good as watching Harry – ”</p><p>Hermione had to fight a sudden urge to laugh as Ron swore and lunged at Myrtle. She floated high above his reach, looking down at him reprovingly. “I was only paying you a compliment!” her voice floated down.</p><p>“Hermione, can we please go?” beseeched Ron. “Anything to get away from her. Please.”</p><p>“Yes, let’s,” said Hermione, standing at the entrance and peering down the pipe. It was pitch dark inside, and it was impossible to see anything at all. She felt her stomach squirm, realizing that she was not at all anxious to step into the pipe and fall into oblivion.</p><p>But then her hand was in Ron’s, his fingers intertwining with hers. Hermione felt warmth shoot up from the tips of her fingers up her arm and to the rest of her body. She turned and looked at Ron, who looked a little apprehensive. Perhaps he thought she wouldn’t like him holding her hand? She smiled at him and he returned the smile, looking intensely relieved. Hand in hand, they stepped into the pipe, and then let go.</p><p>Hermione was reminded of the Muggle waterparks her parents used to take her to as a child, where there were chutes which people could slide down, landing with a massive splash in the pool. Hermione had always been scared of the water chutes, but this made the waterpark look completely tame. This pipe was dark, there was something slimy along the walls and she was sure she was better off not knowing what it was. She shut her eyes tight, concentrating on Ron’s hand, which she was still tightly gripping.</p><p>It felt like an eternity but they finally landed on a damp floor. Hermione opened her eyes. It was pitch black.</p><p>“<em>Lumos</em>,” she heard Ron mutter, and his face was lit up eerily in the flickering wandlight. He was looking at Hermione concernedly. “Are you all right, Hermione? Did you get hurt?”</p><p>“N – no,” said Hermione, struggling to her feet. She then realized that she was still holding Ron’s hand. Feeling herself blush and inwardly grateful that Ron couldn’t see her properly, she stood up and hauled Ron to his feet.</p><p>“Ron – how do you know Parseltongue?”</p><p>Ron laughed. “I don’t know Parseltongue! I heard Harry say that to the locket – ” he hissed again – “and I just imitated him.”</p><p>“Ron,” said Hermione, weakly, “you have no idea how clever you are.”</p><p>Ron tried to look modest.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. The Indestructible Bond</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Introducing a new kind of magic, in line with the Unforgivable Curses, Unbreakable Vows and the like - an Indestructible Bond! This chapter doesn't really add anything to the story but it contributes towards my over all cause of bringing Ron and Hermione closer.</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Hermione lit her wand, and the two made their way into the tunnel ahead of them. It was depressingly silent. Hermione shuddered when she saw the bones of small animals strewn all over the stone floor of the tunnel. Her fingers sought Ron’s hand in the dark and closed on his wrist. He seemed to have been expecting it, because he didn’t jump when she made contact, and held her hand reassuringly. It was better than anything he could have possibly said.</p><p>“Ah,” said Ron, stopping suddenly. The wandlight fell onto what looked like a dead end, except for a small gap in the rocks. “Here’s the roof fall that that git Lockhart made, when he tried to wipe our memories.”</p><p>Hermione stood considering for a moment what might have happened if Ron’s wand hadn’t been broken back then, if the spell hadn’t backfired. Voldemort would have come back to life two years before he actually did. It would be Harry and Ron, and not Lockhart, who would be in the long-term resident ward at St. Mungo’s. Harry wouldn’t remember anything and wouldn’t know why Voldemort was hunting him. And Ginny – poor little Ginny would have died at the age of eleven. The Weasley family  would have been destroyed beyond repair. And so would she - Hermione - assuming, of course, that she hadn’t already been murdered for her blood status.</p><p>“Alright, then,” said Ron, in a business-like tone, jerking Hermione out of her reverie. “We need to make this hole on the roof fall a little bigger. It was enough to haul out Ginny and Harry five years ago – blimey, has it been that long?”</p><p>Hermione allowed Ron to take charge, obediently moving rocks as per his directions. It was easier to just follow instructions rather than to plan and worry about things. After a quarter of an hour, the hole was big enough for both of them to climb through. Ron went through first. Hermione, not anxious to be alone, hurried through behind him. Stepping through the gap, she straightened up and then froze. The light from Ron’s wand was illuminating something huge and scaly, lying on the floor. Hermione’s voice seemed to die in her throat.</p><p>“The basilisk’s skin,” whispered Ron. “It was here last time.”</p><p>Hermione didn’t trust herself to speak. The sight of the skin made her feel sick. She could estimate very well how big the animal that shed it must have been – at least twenty feet long. She had seen the basilisk in Penelope Clearwater’s hand mirror, of course, but she hadn’t noticed just how enormous it was. To think that such a creature had been roaming around the school – and to think – to think Harry had had to fight it singlehandedly as a twelve-year-old child! Harry…</p><p>“Ron?” said Hermione. Her voice was very small. “D’you – d’you think Harry’s okay? Do you reckon he made it to Ravenclaw Tower all right?”</p><p>“He’s fine, Hermione,” said Ron, with conviction. “So far, at least. I’m sure that if something was wrong, then I – we – we would know.”</p><p>“How would we know? Unless we’re all Legilimens?”</p><p>“Well – Dad told me about this once and it’s pretty cool, to be honest,” said Ron. He paused, and then continued.</p><p>“He said that there’s an ancient sort of magic that operates between people who love each other,” said Ron, carefully avoiding Hermione’s eye. “Families, for example. And friends, of course. It’s called an – an Indestructible Bond, I think. It’s one of the things the Department of Mysteries is trying to understand. So, if someone is in a bad way – then the people who love them come to know about it. It’s a very special sort of magic and it takes years to develop – as long as it takes two people to form a solid bond.”</p><p>Ron swallowed and looked down at his feet.</p><p>“I’ve felt it, several times. So have you, I’m sure. I knew what it was when Dad told me about it. The first time it happened, I didn’t understand it. It was in second year.”</p><p>Ron’s voice was very low. “It was just before a Quidditch match, Gryffindor versus Hufflepuff. You had just dashed off to the library, screaming that you’d understood something – and Harry and I were up in Gryffindor Tower, getting his broom and robes. It was then that I suddenly felt awful – somehow, I felt I had to check on you. It was ridiculous. I couldn’t explain it. But Harry felt it too. He looked up at me with this weird look on his face, and said ‘You reckon Hermione’s all right?’ ”</p><p>“Minutes after, McGonagall told us you’d been Petrified.” Ron’s voice cracked.</p><p>“Oh, Ron,” whispered Hermione. She stepped over to him and put her arms around him.</p><p>“It happened again in second year,” mumbled Ron into her shoulder. “When Riddle brought Ginny in here.” Hermione felt her shirt get wet as tears poured down Ron’s face.</p><p>Ron suddenly seemed to come to. He stepped away from Hermione and wiped his nose on his sleeve. “Look at me, being such a soppy git,” he said, with a reluctant grin. “C’mon, let’s move. We’ve got Horcruxes to finish off!”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. The Basilisk</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>This chapter progresses only marginally from the last! There's a bit of fluff in here but not much, and this is the most 'fluffy' it'll get. There'll be more action in the next couple of chapters, I promise. <br/>Sorry about that - I generally write in a long-winded manner. Thanks for being patient!</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Ron and Hermione continued past the huge snakeskin and into a twisting tunnel. Hermione was starting to lose track of time. It felt as though they had been walking in this labyrinthine place for hours. At last, they rounded a turning to face a wall with two great serpents set in stone. They had emeralds for eyes, which gleamed in the light of their wands. Hermione swallowed, her hand seeking Ron’s in the darkness – but Ron got there first, grabbing her hand with such force that she winced a little.</p><p>“Do you think we need to go through this wall?” muttered Ron.</p><p>Hermione stood considering the wall, feeling much better now that she and Ron were grasping hands. “Well, it seems to be the only thing to do, doesn’t it?” she said. “This tunnel doesn’t lead anywhere else. But how – ”</p><p>Hermione’s eyes, searching the wall for any weak spots or crevices, came to rest on the glittering emerald eyes. They looked strangely alive.</p><p>“Of course,” whispered Hermione, and Ron nodded understandingly.</p><p>“Let’s go, shall we?” said Ron, squeezing Hermione’s hand.</p><p>Hermione nodded. “Do it,” she whispered.</p><p>Ron drew in a deep breath, and for the fourth time that evening, the terrible hissing filled Hermione’s ears. But Ron had done it perfectly this time – the hissing was drowned by a grating moan as the stone serpents slid apart.</p><p>Hermione and Ron exchanged a look, and then stepped through the opening between the serpents.</p><p>“Bloody <em>hell</em>,” whispered Ron.</p><p>An enormous serpent, ugly green in colour, was sprawled on the floor of a long, dimly lit chamber. Its head was covered in a brownish substance that Hermione recognized, with a jolt, to be dried blood. Its jaws were apart, revealing sharp, curved fangs, filthy and evil-looking. The basilisk’s only redeeming feature was that it was well and truly dead.</p><p>The Chamber itself was grotesque, Hermione thought, walking along the wall, clinging onto Ron’s hand for dear life. There were stone snakes everywhere, twined around pillars. The ceiling was so high that all she could see above was blackness. An eerie greenish glow – the source of which she couldn’t see – illuminated the Chamber. And finally, aside from the basilisk, the most striking artefact of the Chamber –</p><p>“Git,” muttered Ron, looking up at the stone face of Salazar Slytherin. “Him and his great ugly snake… must’ve been mental, how else could he be You-Know-Who’s ancestor?”</p><p>Hermione stared at Slytherin. He had definitely been evil; there was no doubt about it. In his time, he had handpicked cunning and ambitious pure-bloods for Slytherin House – had he chosen students as devious and prejudiced as himself?</p><p>“Dunno what Gryffindor was thinking, being best mates with Slytherin,” said Ron. “I’m a little ashamed of Gryffindor, to be honest.” He smiled at Hermione, looking expectant. “Penny for your thoughts?”</p><p>Hermione shook herself and smiled back. It was amazing how Ron seemed to know when she needed to lighten up or be distracted.</p><p>“No, just thinking – ”</p><p>“Because that’s what you do,” interrupted Ron. “You think too much, and most of the times that drives me crazy – but I swear I’m never going to complain about it again. Your thinking has saved our necks so many times this past year and all the years before.” He brushed her cheek gently with his free hand and Hermione felt her face grow hot.</p><p>“I don’t know what I’d do without you, Hermione.”</p><p>Hermione’s heart began to beat very fast. With flushed cheeks she raised her eyes to meet Ron’s. His blue eyes were fixed on her, and there was a tenderness in them that Hermione had never seen before. Ron was standing facing her - with his flaming red hair, freckled nose, and the bright blue eyes whose merest glance made her heart race - looking utterly irresistible. They were almost nose to nose.</p><p><em>Kiss him! </em>screamed a voice in Hermione’s head, and she almost obeyed – when another voice in her head piped up. <em>Would you reel it in? We have a job at hand!</em></p><p>Hermione stared unseeingly at a spot somewhere to Ron’s left.</p><p>“Basilisk fangs,” she said, trying to keep her voice as normal as she could while her heart seemed to be doing its best to free itself from her ribs and jump into her throat. She stepped away from Ron, dropping his hand. Her fingers tingled at the place he’d touched them. He looked a little disappointed, but he nodded.</p><p><em>Not now</em>, she told herself furiously.</p><p><em>Then when?</em> retorted the irate voice that had ordered her, moments ago, to snog Ron.</p><p>“Soon,” she said firmly.</p><p>“What was that?”</p><p>“What – oh! Sorry, I was talking to myself,” mumbled Hermione, pink in the face, wondering if Ron could read her thoughts.</p><p>“Ah, well,” said Ron, shrugging. “C’mon, I’m looking forward to seeing that snake toothless.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Helga Hufflepuff's Cup</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>This chapter ends at a cliffhanger, and we'll get a glimpse of what Hufflepuff's cup has in store for Hermione!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Hermione stood up, sweating and pushing her hair out of her face, after half an hour’s worth of effort. The fangs hadn’t been easy to pull out of the basilisk’s jaws – they were firmly rooted, and five years of dust and dried blood had cemented them further. Ron had been all for using the Reductor Curse on the basilisk.</p><p>“Ron, no! That could shatter the fangs and splatter us with venom!”</p><p>“Killjoy,” Ron had said, but he put his wand away all the same.</p><p>And then they had started yanking the fangs out with as much force as they could muster with their hands. Half an hour later, Ron and Hermione stood, surveying the pile of fangs in front of them.</p><p>“I think those should be enough,” said Ron. “We can’t carry more of those – we’d look like prats.”</p><p>“Not to mention we might stab ourselves accidentally,” muttered Hermione, shuddering. She stooped to the ground and began to scoop the yellow fangs off the floor, piling them into her arms.</p><p>“Hermione,” said Ron, watching her, “we can just dump those in your bag, right?”</p><p>“Absolutely NOT,” snapped Hermione, wheeling around to stare at Ron, aghast at his suggestion. “I am <em>not</em> going to put these filthy things inside my bag, there are <em>books</em> in there, Ron, how could you even think – ?”</p><p>To her consternation, Ron was laughing helplessly.</p><p>“Sorry, Hermione, it’s just – ” Ron struggled to bring the words out, gasping for air and still in a fit of mirth.</p><p>“Just what?” said Hermione, icily.</p><p>“Just that you’re actually thinking about <em>books</em> right now when we don’t know if we’ll be alive or dead an hour from now.”</p><p>Ron sobered up rapidly as he spoke, realizing that he had said something wrong. Hermione felt the familiar lump rise in her throat again, and felt tears pricking the back of her eyes. She blinked them away resolutely.</p><p>“Ron,” she said, choosing to ignore his last comment, “these fangs’ll <em>work</em>, won’t they?”</p><p>“What do you mean?” asked Ron, looking pleased that Hermione hadn’t broken down and was looking quite composed.</p><p>“I read up all I could about basilisk venom when we were in the forest,” began Hermione, frowning at Ron, the corners of whose mouth were threatening to lift again,  “and all that the books said was that the venom of the basilisk is produced only once in its lifetime when it reaches its full size, and it remains potent until the basilisk dies. But they don’t say anything about what happens when a basilisk dies – and this one’s been dead five years.”</p><p>“Well, there’s only one way to find out, isn’t there?” said Ron, gesturing at Hermione’s beaded bag. “Let’s get rid of that cup.”</p><p>“Right,” said Hermione, setting her armful of fangs back on the floor. She opened her bag, and pointed her wand into it.</p><p>“<em>Accio </em>Hufflepuff’s cup!”</p><p>But no cup zoomed out of Hermione’s bag. She shoved her wand back into her pocket and reached into her bag, searching frantically for the cup. Ron was watching her anxiously.</p><p>“It can’t have gone anywhere, Hermione, it’ll be there.”</p><p>“Found it,” breathed Hermione, her fingers closing gratefully around one of the engraved handles of the cup. She pulled it out and stood it on the stone floor. It was a beautiful cup, with a carved badger, its gold catching the glow of the Chamber. It looked quite out of place in Salazar Slytherin’s private lair.</p><p>Hermione turned to Ron, her heart beating fast.</p><p>“I’ll do it, shall I?” she said. “I sort of – sort of <em>feel</em> I should do it, you know? Harry killed the diary, you destroyed the locket…”</p><p>“Yeah,” said Ron. “Harry told me to destroy the locket; he wouldn’t do it himself, he opened it and made me do it. I think you’re to do this.”</p><p>Ron eyed the cup with great distaste, as Hermione nodded, knelt down beside the cup and armed herself with a fang off the floor. “I’ve had it with bloody Horcruxes,” he added. “Slytherin’s locket was a handful – ”</p><p>Hermione had fixed her eyes on the cup, and was about to raise the fang high into the air. She stopped and turned to Ron.</p><p>“What do you mean, it was a handful?”</p><p>Ron didn’t seem to want to meet Hermione’s eyes. He had gone pale and was looking past her at the cup.</p><p>“Hermione,” he said, ignoring her, “the cup won’t die quietly, alright? Harry said that that bit of Riddle inside the diary tried to kill him, and the locket – ”</p><p>He drew in a deep breath, and Hermione was shocked to see that his eyes were moist. Ron stepped towards Hermione, knelt down beside her and put a hand on her shoulder.</p><p>“Hermione,” he said, in a stronger voice, and looking her straight in the eyes now, “no matter <em>what</em> happens, just stab that thing, and stab it good and hard.”</p><p>“I will,” whispered Hermione, as Ron gave her a watery smile, stood up, and stepped backwards.</p><p>Once more, Hermione focused her gaze on the cup. She could feel Ron’s eyes on her. She raised her hand high in the air, the fang clutched tightly in her fingers.</p><p>The cup, which had stood motionless all this while, trembled slightly.</p><p>“<em>Hermione,</em>” hissed a woman’s soft voice, echoing from the depths of the cup.</p><p>Hermione froze.</p><p>“M-Mum?” she whispered, not daring to believe her ears.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>I hope you liked that! Will update soon. In case anyone's wondering, I thought that the Summoning Charm wouldn't work on a Horcrux since it is really precious to Voldemort and he'd have set up some countercharm around it.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0007"><h2>7. Hermione's Greatest Fear</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Sorry for the delay in posting this next chapter. Hope you enjoy it. Read on to find out what happened to Hermione when she tried to stab Hufflepuff's cup!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Hermione knelt on the stone floor of the Chamber, her body rigid and unmoving, completely transfixed by the cup in front of her. Only after hearing her mother’s voice did she realize how badly she missed her parents and how desperate she was to see and hear them again, to feel her father’s strong, warm hug and feel her mother kiss her gently like she used to when putting a young Hermione to bed.</p><p>“Hermione,” said a deeper voice, issuing from the cup.</p><p>“Dad.” Hermione’s voice cracked, framing that one word. She lowered her raised arm down to the ground, her grip around the basilisk fang loosening.</p><p>“Hermione, how could you do this to us?” said her father’s voice.</p><p>“Do what?” squeaked Hermione, stiffening. From somewhere very far away, she could hear someone calling her. It sounded familiar… was it Ron? But that didn’t matter.</p><p>“You know very well what we’re talking about, sweetheart,” said her mother’s voice. “Don’t try to deny it.”</p><p>The affection in Mrs. Granger’s voice was evident, and somehow this hurt Hermione much more than it would have, had she yelled at her. Hermione felt her eyes fill with tears, the cup before her growing fuzzy.</p><p>“Mum… Dad… I’m so sorry…”</p><p>“Hermione,” came her father’s voice, very stern. “What you’ve done is a terrible thing, and it’s a very serious matter.”</p><p>“But Dad,” cried Hermione, “it was for your safety! I didn’t want you to be found, or questioned, or killed, just because you’re my parents!”</p><p>“All that is not important,” whispered her mother’s voice. “What’s important is – ”</p><p>“<em>No</em>,” moaned Hermione, burying her face in her hands. “No, <em>no</em>, please – ”</p><p>“ – that you never gave us a chance to consent to what you did to us.”</p><p>“<em>No,</em>” croaked Hermione, through her fingers. “I didn’t mean – ”</p><p>“Yes, you thought it was for <em>our own good</em>,” came her father’s voice harshly, spitting out the last three words with a great deal of contempt.</p><p>Hermione’s eyes were brimming with tears. One great tear freed itself and splashed onto the floor. Her parents’ voices continued relentlessly.</p><p>“You modified our memories. You made us believe that we were someone else. You made us forget we have a daughter.”</p><p>Tears were flowing freely down Hermione’s cheeks, splashing onto her shirt. She opened her mouth but no sound came out.</p><p>“You never asked us if we agreed with you tampering with our memories. Surely we had the right to choose?”</p><p>“Dad – ” said Hermione, brokenly.</p><p>“No, Hermione, I will not hear any excuses,” said her father’s voice, cutting right across her. “You misused your magical abilities. And we were the victims of that. <em>Your own parents.</em>”</p><p>“How can we ever trust you again, darling?” whispered her mother’s voice. “How do we know you won’t maim our memories again?”</p><p>Hermione’s mind was racing. She had avoided thinking about her parents all through the time she had been in hiding, afraid of confronting her feelings. The truth was that she had been wondering for a long time what her parents would say if she was able to find them after the war and restore their memories.</p><p>“We trusted you, Hermione,” came her father’s voice, a note of disappointment very evident. “All those years ago, when you got your letter to Hogwarts, I didn’t want to let you go. Who knew what you would become? But your mother wanted to give your magic a chance. And so, you went.”</p><p>“What – what does this have to do with magic?” stammered Hermione. Inside her chest, her heart sank. She could almost feel its dull thud. She knew what was coming next.</p><p>“We trusted you, Hermione,” said Mr. Granger. “We trusted you to study magic and use it to do some good in the world. We never dreamed that you would – would – ”</p><p>Mr. Granger’s voice broke. Mrs. Granger’s voice came to his aid.</p><p>“We never dreamed, dear,” said Mrs. Granger’s voice, very gently, “that one day we would just become a burden on you, being non-magical, and that you would turn your magic against us.”</p><p>Hermione gasped.</p><p>“We sent you to Hogwarts in good faith,” went on Mrs. Granger’s voice. “You owe your magical capacities to us, don’t you see? If we hadn’t let you go to Hogwarts, what would you have done?”</p><p>Hermione sobbed silently into her hands.</p><p>“Yes, Hermione, we placed our faith in you, and betrayed our trust,” said Mr. Granger’s voice, very low.</p><p>Hermione stared out unseeingly at the Chamber in front of her. The only thing she could see was the cup. Suddenly, she felt someone shaking her shoulders roughly. She looked up, and far away, she could see a faint flash of red. She blinked, and anxious blue eyes came into focus.</p><p>“Hermione! Can you hear me?”</p><p>Hermione gulped, and nodded.</p><p>“Hermione, don’t listen to them, kill it, NOW!”</p><p>Hermione felt her shoulders released from Ron’s grip. She had been momentarily comforted by the warmth of his hands, and she almost felt deserted as he stepped away from her, the urge to cry threatening to overpower her again. And then, Mrs. Granger’s voice came again.</p><p>“Wendell and Monica Wilkins don’t have a daughter, do they, Hermione?” she hissed.</p><p>Hermione struggled to look up, across the Chamber. She caught Ron’s eye, and he nodded and smiled reassuringly. “Do it!” he cried.</p><p>Hermione’s fingers closed firmly around the fang.</p><p>“And I don’t think the Grangers want their daughter either, anymore,” murmured Mr. Granger’s voice.</p><p>Hermione raised her arm.</p><p>“Pushing us out of the way again, are you, Hermione?” whispered her mother’s voice. “You did it once, and you’re going to do it again?”</p><p>“KILL IT!” bellowed Ron.</p><p>Hermione obeyed blindly. She brought her arm down and struck the cup with the fang, using as much force as she could muster.</p><p>Blood-curdling screams of a man and a woman issued from the cup.</p><p>Hermione felt her body go limp, and her mind became blank. Dimly, she was aware of running feet, a thud on the ground beside her, and someone’s arms close around her protectively. And then Hermione slipped into blackness.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0008"><h2>8. Chapter 8</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Disclaimer: this chapter is only fluff (though not very intense), please bear with me as I am trying to lead up to the moment of the most-awaited kiss in the Harry Potter series!</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Apologies for the abysmal delay in posting this!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Hermione? HERMIONE! Can you hear me?”</p><p>For a split second, Hermione could remember nothing.</p><p>And then it all came rushing back to her.</p><p>“MUM! DAD! No!” she screamed, trying to scramble to her feet. Ron pounced on Hermione and held her, pinning her to the ground. “Hermione, relax!” he yelled. “Your parents are okay!”</p><p>“I – I heard them,” whispered Hermione, her voice breaking. She could feel herself shivering as Ron released her.</p><p>“Ron – no, please,” she said weakly, holding out her arms to him.</p><p>Ron took her hands.</p><p>“You’re in a right state, Hermione,” he said, watching her anxiously. “We’ll get out of here as soon as you’re a little better.”</p><p>He settled himself next to her on the stone floor, and put his arm around her. She leaned her head on his shoulder. Ron squeezed her slightly.</p><p>“It’s okay,” he whispered. “You did it. The cup is gone.”</p><p>“Where – where is it?” said Hermione.</p><p>“Here.”</p><p>Ron held out what once had been a beautiful golden cup. It was now cracked, and the bottom was broken. Stains of blood adorned the borders of the hole the impact of the basilisk fang had made.</p><p>“It’s dead,” said Ron with conviction. “And your parents – ”</p><p>Hermione looked up into Ron’s eyes.</p><p>“Your parents are fine, Hermione,” went on Ron. “You would have known if something was wrong. The Unbreakable Bond, remember?”</p><p>Hermione felt a knot in her chest untwist itself and disappear. Ron was absolutely right. As he had been every single time this night.</p><p>She leaned up and kissed Ron softly on the cheek.</p><p>“Thank you, Ron,” she whispered.</p><p>Ron’s whole body tensed up beside her. Surprised, she looked up. Ron’s face had gone pink and he was looking a little dazed.</p><p>“Ron?”</p><p>“Yeah?” Ron gave Hermione an awkward smile. He still seemed disoriented.</p><p><em>Oh no</em>, thought Hermione, <em>what if he doesn’t feel the same way? What if I’ve been reading him all wrong all this time?</em></p><p>“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable – did you mind – ”</p><p>“Mind?” repeated Ron, sounding incredulous. “Hermione, do you know me at all?”</p><p>Hermione stared at Ron, still bewildered.</p><p>“Bless your heart, Hermione,” said Ron, giving her a pitying look. Abruptly, he stood up, and hauled Hermione to her feet. “Come on, let’s get out of here.”</p><p>Not understanding or trusting herself to speak, Hermione began to gather the scattered fangs from the floor. Ron, too, followed suit.</p><p>“But, Ron – are you upset?”</p><p>Ron exhaled sharply through his mouth.</p><p>“Hermione,” he said, in a slow and infuriating voice, “how can you be so incredibly smart and so incredibly thick at the same time?”</p><p>“I’m not <em>thick</em>, Ronald, if we’d written our N.E.W.T.s then I would have proved to you – ”</p><p>“And there you go,” interrupted Ron, grinning at her. “Back to normal. Now how do we get out of here?”</p><p>“Broomstick.” The answer left Hermione’s mouth by sheer force of habit. She was still smarting at the fact that Ron had called her ‘thick’.</p><p>“Can you Conjure one?” said Ron. He looked impressed.</p><p>Hermione felt a little mollified.</p><p>“Of course,” she said, in a matter-of-fact tone. “Can you hold these fangs?”</p><p>Ron took the fangs from Hermione. Taking out her wand, Hermione concentrated with all her might and executed a complicated motion with her wrist. She was determined to do it without saying the incantation out loud.</p><p>There was a loud crack and a sturdy-looking broom materialised, hovering a few feet above the ground.</p><p>“Nicely done!” exclaimed Ron.</p><p>“And I can ride in the front, too,” said Hermione, resolutely.</p><p>“Be my guest,” said Ron, smirking slightly.</p><p>Going red in the face with annoyance, Hermione put one leg over the broom. Ron was watching her in a very patronising sort of way.</p><p>“Is this broom good enough for you?” said Hermione, eyeing him tersely.</p><p>“Sure,” he grinned. Hermione felt the broom sink a little as Ron sat behind her, and then nearly jumped out of her skin when she felt Ron’s hands on her waist. Willing herself to stay calm, she kicked off from the ground.</p><p>“Don’t you think it’s incredible?” whispered Ron. “You’re brilliant enough to Conjure a broomstick out of thin air, but not smart enough to tell that I liked it when you kissed me."</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Hope you liked it! Next chapter will the be the last one.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0009"><h2>9. The Kiss</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Presenting the most-awaited kiss of all time, as far as the HP universe is concerned!</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>First of all, my humblest apologies for not posting for this long. It has been abysmally long. I am painfully aware of this. I just didn't know how to wrap up the story. I've finally done it now. Hope you like it!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Hermione and Ron collapsed on the floor of Moaning Myrtle’s bathroom, the broomstick rolling out from underneath them and coming to a halt a few feet away. Taking only a minute to catch her breath, Hermione opened her beaded bag and pointed her wand into it.</p><p>“<em>Accio</em> fangs!”</p><p>The basilisk fangs came zooming out and landed in a neat pile at her feet. Hermione pursed her lips. Ron had made her stop the broom barely a minute after they’d been flying, insisting that he couldn’t hold the fangs as well as stay on the broom. Hermione hated the idea of the fangs going into her bag and even <em>touching</em> her precious books, but there hadn’t been any other choice. But the moment they stopped flying, there was no question of the fangs remaining inside the bag any longer.</p><p>“Of course.”</p><p>Hermione turned around to face Ron. His face wore a look of mingled amusement and exasperation. How many times since their first year at Hogwarts had he worn that look? Every time she dashed off to the library between lessons and even at mealtimes, every time her hand shot up in class before anyone else’s to answer a question. Countless times. And here they both were, seven years since the first time they met, and nothing had changed. Fighting an urge to laugh, Hermione mustered every bit of dignity she possessed.</p><p>“We can carry the fangs in our hands now, Ronald.”</p><p>Smirking, Ron picked up the broom. He then began to gather the fangs, wearing an expression of patient suffering.</p><p>Hermione couldn’t trust herself to speak. For the life of her she couldn’t figure out how it was that she had developed feelings for someone so completely and consistently infuriating. <em>Love is blind</em>, whispered a little voice in Hermione’s head. Feeling the colour rising in her cheeks, she hurriedly knelt beside Ron and busied herself over the fangs, taking care to hide her face.</p><p>“Where do you reckon Harry is?” said Ron, as they stepped out the bathroom. Crowds of students were still hurrying through the corridors, and no one seemed to notice Ron and Hermione carrying their suspicious cargo.</p><p>“Room of Requirement?”</p><p>“We should probably try Ravenclaw Tower first,” said Hermione, a sense of helplessness hitting her. How were they supposed to find Harry in the castle now? What if he had been captured or harmed by Death Eaters?</p><p>“Harry’s fine, Hermione,” said Ron firmly.</p><p>“Right,” whispered Hermione, blinking back the tears pricking her eyelids. <em>The Unbreakable Bond</em>. Harry was all right. So far, at least.</p><p>“C’mon, Hermione,” said Ron, plunging into the crowd. Hermione ran to keep up with him. How long they were moving, she couldn’t tell. They had walked down what seemed like endless corridors until finally, Harry came hurrying round the corner.</p><p>Harry let out a yell. “Where the <em>hell </em>have you been?” he snarled.</p><p>“Chamber of Secrets,” said Ron.</p><p>“Chamber – <em>what?</em>” Harry finally stopped.</p><p>Hermione couldn’t contain herself any longer. “It was Ron, all Ron’s idea!” she cried. “Wasn’t it absolutely brilliant? There we were, after we left, and I said to Ron, even if we find the other one, how are we going to get rid of it? We still hadn’t got rid of the cup! And then he thought of it! The basilisk!”</p><p>Sheer pride was evident in Hermione’s voice as she talked. Ron looked round at her, his face glowing, the tips of his ears turning red. Hermione’s heart began to beat faster. An interruption from Harry brought her back to earth.</p><p>“What the – ”</p><p>“Something to get rid of Horcruxes,” put in Ron.</p><p>Harry seemed to finally see the basilisk fangs that Ron and Hermione were clutching. His eyes travelled from the fangs to Ron’s face.</p><p>“But how did you get in there?” asked Harry. “You need to speak Parseltongue!”</p><p>“He did,” whispered Hermione. “Show him, Ron!”</p><p>Ron opened his mouth and hissed the way he had done in the Chamber. “It’s what you did to open the locket,” he told Harry. “I had to have a few goes to get it right, but we got there in the end.” He shrugged.</p><p>“He was <em>amazing</em>!” said Hermione. “Amazing!”</p><p>“So…” said Harry, “so…”</p><p>“So we’re another Horcrux down,” said Ron, pulling out the remains of Hufflepuff’s cup from under his jacket. “Hermione stabbed it. Thought she should. She hasn’t had the pleasure yet.”</p><p>“Genius!” yelled Harry.</p><p>Hermione felt she was surely going to burst with pride. How could she ever, for even a moment, have grudged Ron his hour of brilliance? She didn’t anymore. His successes and failures were hers to share in. Hermione had a sudden flash of clarity, and it was so obvious now that she felt dazed. <em>I love Ron and he needs to know that!</em></p><p>An explosion overhead brought Hermione back to earth. Dust fell from the ceiling and a distant scream was audible.</p><p>“I know what the diadem looks like, and I know where it is,” said Harry quickly. “He hid it exactly where I had my old Potions book, where everyone’s been hiding stuff for centuries. He thought he was the only one to find it. Come on.”</p><p>The walls around them shuddered as they made their way to the Room of Requirement. Ginny was there, as Hermione had expected. To her surprise, there were also others – Tonks and Neville’s grandmother, Mrs. Longbottom.</p><p>“Ah, Potter,” said Mrs. Longbottom, “you can tell us what’s going on.”</p><p>“Is everyone okay?” asked Ginny and Tonks.</p><p>“’S far as we know,” said Harry. “Are there still people in the passage to the Hog’s Head?”</p><p>“I was the last to come through,” said Mrs. Longbottom. “I sealed it, I think it unwise to leave it open now Aberforth has left his pub. Have you seen my grandson?”</p><p>“He’s fighting,” said Harry.</p><p>“Naturally,” said Mrs. Longbottom proudly. “Excuse me, I must go and assist him.”</p><p>And with that she vanished.</p><p>“I thought you were supposed to be with Teddy at your mother’s?” asked Harry of Tonks.</p><p>“I couldn’t stand not knowing –” said Tonks. She looked terribly worried. “She’ll look after him – have you seen Remus?”</p><p>“He was planning to lead a group of fighters into the grounds – ” began Harry.</p><p>Tonks ran off behind Mrs. Longbottom.</p><p>“Ginny,” said Harry, “I’m sorry, but we need you to leave too. Just for a bit. Then you can come back in.”</p><p>Ginny’s enthusiasm was obvious as she got up and sped off.</p><p>“And then you can come back in!” Harry shouted she ran up the steps after Tonks. “<em>You’ve got to come back in!</em>”</p><p>“Hang on a moment!” said Ron sharply. “We’ve forgotten someone!”</p><p>“Who?” asked Hermione.</p><p>“The house-elves, they’ll all be down in the kitchen, won’t they?”</p><p>“You mean we ought to get them fighting?” asked Harry.</p><p>“No,” said Ron, “I mean we should tell them to get out. We don’t want any more Dobbies, do we? We can’t order them to die for us – ”</p><p>Hermione heard no more. Her heart was pounding against her ribs, blood rushing to her head. Ron cared for the welfare of the house-elves! Even though he’d been horrible to Kreacher earlier, his heart was in the right place. Despite being in the midst of a fatal war, Hermione’s cup of joy was overflowing. Could Ron be any more perfect? Could she possibly love him any more than she already did?</p><p><em>Kiss him!</em> roared the voice in her head, and this time, Hermione obeyed.</p><p>She was dimly aware of dropping the fangs she was carrying. All that she could see clearly was Ron – Ron, who teased her and drove her mad, but who also cared for her with a fierce passion that no one else could rival. She flung herself on him, and, twining her arms round his neck, kissed him.</p><p>For a split-second, Hermione was conscious only of the feel of Ron’s lips on hers. It was bliss as she had never experienced before. The next second, she felt all the air squeezed out of her body as Ron’s arms wrapped themselves around her. She could feel his lips moving against hers as he returned the kiss. His hold on her tightened and she felt her feet leave the ground.</p><p>This was not Hermione’s first time kissing someone. She had kissed Viktor back in her fourth year. But to be kissing Ron – who had always been a staunch friend and supporter, with whom so much had been exchanged and felt but nothing said out loud – Viktor was nothing in comparison. Ron and Hermione’s bond ran so much deeper. Hermione tried to pour all her unspoken feelings into the kiss, gripping Ron harder.</p><p>Harry’s irate voice broke in. “Oi! There’s a war going on here!”</p><p>With an effort, Hermione broke away from Ron. Ron still held Hermione in his arms as he turned to face Harry, a dazed but satisfied smile on his face.</p><p>“I know, mate,” said Ron, “so it’s now or never, isn’t it?”</p><p>His logic was unassailable.</p><p>Harry didn’t seem to think so, however.</p><p>“Never mind that, what about the Horcrux?” he yelled. “D’you think you could just – just hold it in until we’ve got the diadem?”</p><p>Ron blushed, and Hermione felt her face grow hot, too.</p><p>“Yeah – right – sorry,” muttered Ron, and he and Hermione began to gather fangs from the floor. Hermione was conscious of a little embarrassment at having allowed Harry to witness such a moment of passion between herself and Ron. But did it really matter, though? Harry had been there with them all these years and recently the tension between Ron and Hermione had been especially palpable. There was no way that Harry hadn’t known that this was coming, sooner or later. Hermione suppressed a smile and picked another fang off the floor. Feeling Ron’s eyes on her, she looked up. He was beaming at her, looking ridiculously delighted.</p><p>Hermione couldn’t hide her smile anymore. Ron finally knew.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>And that's THE END. I loved writing this. I hope you liked reading it. Thanks for sticking with me till the end of this fic!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
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